Journey
by Aissu
Summary: Following Tsuna's initiation as Decimo and the ups and downs of his life with the people he loves. [Update: ix. rivalry]
1. beginnings

It's been.. about two years and more since I last updated Dare Box. And I know I keep promising to update but I never did get around to it, did I? But rest assured, it will not be discontinued until I'm finished writing every single chapter I planned to. I decided to get over my absolute lack of motivation and conviction in my writing by trying out a 100 day writing challenge. It's not going to be easy but I'll do my best to upload at least one chapter a day.

* * *

Gokudera Hayato stood at his Decimo's side, tall and sturdy. His handsome features were painted in an expression quite different from his usual scowl – a mixture of pride and solemnness. He had been chosen as the right-hand man. He rested his eyes on the crowd before him, his chest burning with a feeling he could not quite explain, as they watched the man on his left.

"…And henceforth Tsunayoshi Sawada is heir and successor of the tenth generation Vongola Famiglia."

The crowd rose, raising their glasses to the Decimo who stepped forward to receive his title.

Tsuna knelt before the Vongola Nono, bowing his head respectfully. Timoteo gestured for Tsuna to lift his head and clasped the mantle of the Vongola Primo around the younger man's neck.

Gokudera felt the breath catch in his throat. At that instant, Tsuna's likeness to the first Vongola don had never seemed more apparent.

Tsuna stood up, regal and commanding, as he resumed his position at the middle of his Guardians.

Among the crowd, Reborn smirked, tipping his fedora lightly. The Guardians stood by their friend and leader, wearing similar expressions on their faces. His former student had much left to learn, but at that instant, he looked like anything but incapable.

* * *

If you guys enjoyed this, let me know in the comments and I'll put up a poll (if y'all are interested) on my profile and you guys can vote for the characters you'd like to see here eventually apart from the Vongola Famiglia! **The chapters will be loosely related, but do follow a chronological order somewhat.**


	2. complicated

I realised I forgot to mention that the chapter titles are not included here on the story itself. And this time, I'm not quite sure if I managed to explain my take on the prompt. It's... _complicated_ x'D Many chapters will probably be Tsuna-centric because I'm very much biased towards him.

* * *

The newly appointed Don threw his hands up in frustration and a few stray papers flew off his cluttered desk. At that very moment, his Hyper Intuition flared almost painfully. Tsuna scrambled to the other side of the room as his chair crashed to the floor from the impact. Barely had a second passed before a body crashed in through the open double-hung window.

Somewhat majestically, the culprit stood in the hurricane of paper, looking anything but guilty.

It was not long before he was holding off an absolutely livid Sawada Tsunayoshi.

"Kyouya," the twenty-two-year-old growled lowly. "What did I say about fighting outside?"

The dark-haired man shrugged, his face breaking into a smirk as he pushed Tsuna back with his tonfas.

"Spar with me, omnivore."

Tsuna snapped at the male for the third time that week. "You know why my paperwork keeps growing? It's because of you guys. Destroying something or the other _every single day_! And I know you're outside, Mukuro."

Hibari Kyouya caught himself as he was thrown backwards by the younger man's force, clicking his tongue with displeasure as the man he had been fighting with made his appearance.

"Kufufu, how perceptive of you as always, Vongola."

Tsuna's usually gentle expression had contorted into one of absolute displeasure as he kept his eyes trained on his Cloud and Mist Guardians.

"Do you need me to spell out what will happen if you guys try fighting anywhere other than the training room?" Tsuna's flames seemed to be residing in his amber eyes instead of his hands and forehead where they should have been rightfully burning.

Wordlessly, Hibari slipped out of the window and Mukuro dissipated into the air.

While both had no intention of taking a single step back, holding their fight at a truce would perhaps be for the better.


	3. making history

It feels a little strange without any input from me here. I hunted for the episode where Tsuna said this, and I ended being absolutely captivated by Primo and Tsuna's flames.

* * *

 _"If you're going to make me succeed all those mistaken actions, then I'll destroy the Vongola!"_

Breafast. A daily routine at the immense Vongola mansion based in Italy, that Tsuna had inherited.

The Storm Guardian would never fail to to pick some sort of fight with the Rain Guardian and Sasawagawa Ryouhei would return exactly an hour late for breakfast, huffing about how he could not pass up the chance to go on an extreme run.

Hibari was away on a mission and Tsuna had sent Mukuro on a separate investigation.

"Ahh, what's for breakfast today?" Lambo drawled, rubbing his eyes sleepily. He tumbled over to his seat and looked around.

"Good morning," Chrome chimed softly, only to be drowned out.

"There you are, you brat!" Gokudera scowled. "Look at the time!

"But Tsuna-nii doesn't mind, right?"

Tsuna smiled, ruffling the boy's hair. "Good morning. Don't think I'll excuse you every single time, Lambo."

"You should be more firm with him, Tenth!" Gokudera pointed his fork at the child, wagging it threateningly. "Just you wait. I'll reform you soon enough."

"Bleegh, I'm so scared," Lambo taunted, blowing a raspberry at the silver-haired man.

"Now, now," Yamamoto laughed, pulling Gokudera down before he could go on a rampage. "Let's all have breakfast first."

Tsuna's features softened.

Even now, he knew his declaration would never waver. He would tear down the walls that had been splattered crimson bearing the history of the Vongola. He would make history breaking it.

To protect all that was precious to him.

* * *

I'll try to make the new updates quick. Writing these tiny stories makes me really happy. It's kind of therapeutic, really.


	4. dark

This one is a little longer than usual. Because there was a lot to write, but in the end it was just a little fluff about big brothers being protective. I'll update more later today!

* * *

Lambo barely had time to gasp before he was grabbed and thrown into the backseat of a van. He felt the engine come alive with a roar and he held back the bile as the nauseating ride began. His heart was thudding so loudly he feared his captors would hear it. The bulky man sitting next to him soundlessly bound his feet and arms, rendering his struggle futile.

"Heh, imagine the ransom. I heard the Vongola is filthy rich."

The thirteen-year-old's shout of anger was cut off when the man slapped duct tape over his mouth, as if he had predicted it.

"Knock the brat out for now, we don't need him seeing where he's going."

And that was the last Lambo heard before the strong smell of chloroform overwhelmed his senses and darkness took over.

* * *

Tsuna stopped mid-sentence, looking outside the window. His Hyper Intuition had been tingling since the start of the day. He fingered his Vongola ring, eyebrows curving into a frown.

"What's wrong?" Yamamto followed his gaze.

"Something… I'm worried. Has Lambo come back from school yet?"

As if to answer his question, the telephone began to ring. The two glanced at each other, their expressions grim. They headed to the dining room with haste and the Rain Guardian picked up the call.

"This is the Vongola mansion."

A low cackle answered him from the other end. "We've got your brat, and if you want him safe you better hand us money."

Yamamoto's twinkling eyes hardened and he ran his hands lightly over his weapons.

"He had better be safe."

"Oh, he couldn't be in a better condition. Just a little bump on his precious head. Here, brat, let 'em hear your voice."

"Hello…?"

"Lambo!" Yamamoto started, trying to keep the tension seeping into his voice. "Are you safe?"

"Nyahaha, I couldn't be better," the boy put up a brave front but Yamamoto could discern the slight tremble in his voice.

"Outta the way, brat, that's enough. If you want him back, bring 5 million euros to the dock near the loading port at the south."

Before Yamamoto could respond, the caller hung up with a definite click.

He looked up into Tsuna's eyes, the epitome of calm before a storm. "Whoever it is, they've kidnapped Lambo."

Tsuna nodded, slipping his black jacket over his prominent orange dress shirt.

"Looks like they don't quite know exactly who they're picking a fight with. Takeshi, get in contact with Hayato and explain the situation to him. We'll meet him on the way."

Yamamoto nodded, absentmindedly tracing the scar on his chin. He smiled wryly. "They truly will have a hurricane of bombs raining down on them soon enough."

* * *

Lambo shivered in the corner of the warehouse he had been unceremoniously dumped. He knew that his family was far too strong to succumb to this pair of idiots who had decided capturing him would ensure their safety. Light flickered faintly through the broken windows and illuminated the shadows of his kidnappers.

If it weren't for the fact that his hands were tied up, he could have attempted to grab his grenades.

He wiggled to the side, trying to find an item to cut through his bindings.

"Oi, brat!" The bigger of the two men fired a shot in his direction and it grazed his cheek. Lambo winced, feeling a trickle of blood run down his cheek. "Don't try anything funny."

He rolled to his side, breathing the foul smell of the duct tape and desperately holding back the tears that threatened to fall.

 _"_ _Stupid cow, you can… hold my hand. It's just the dark, there's nothing to be scared of."_

 _"_ _Who'd want to hold your hand!" the nine-year-old Lambo yelped, glaring in the direction of the silver-haired Storm Guardian._

 _"_ _Why you!" Gokudera snarled, grabbing the boy by his shoulders and pulling his cheek rather violently._

 _Lambo fell silent, looking down. He was terrified. More than anything, he would have clung onto the older boy but his pride was getting in his way._

 _"_ _Don't worry," Gokudera sighed, looking in the opposite direction. "The Tenth will come to find us. You know he will." He placed his hand on Lambo's head, the weight warm and reassuring._

 _In the minefield of explosives that could blow them to pieces with just one misstep, Lambo nodded, eyes cast downwards. There was no way he was crying. Absolutely no way._

The side of the warehouse exploded with a resounding bang and Lambo was swept up in an instant, away from the destruction.

"Sorry for taking so long, Lambo," Yamamoto grinned apologetically, his katana drawn before them.

The boy looked up and through the dust, Tsuna hovered above the ground. His golden flame was burning brightly on his forehead and in an instant, the two men were cowering on the ground.

He looked up, his deep amber eyes boring into Lambo's own.

"We're going home, Lambo."

"Idiot," Gokudera tore the duct tape off his mouth, his brilliant emerald eyes reflecting turbulent emotions. "If you're going to let yourself be kidnapped, at least find us stronger opponents."

"Of course," Lambo sniffled. "This was just a test. The real thing's a lot more difficult so watch out!"


	5. wish

I can't decide if this chapter was just short and pointless ;; Chrome is precious. I love the fandom shorthands and 6996. Well, it's short, but I'm scared of destroying Chrome's characterisation.

* * *

"Make your wish, Chrome!"

The female Mist Guardian was celebrating her 20th birthday with her Famiglia. She had been sent out in the morning to investigate something but she had not realised it was merely a ploy to get her away until they were done with the preparations for the surprise party.

Her cheeks reddened and she nodded, enthralled by the flickering candle flames on the cake. The cake was just as fascinating. It seemed like everyone had taken turns to do the custom icing, and she could vaguely make out a pineapple that had angry red icing lines drawn over it.

"T-Then, I'm going to blow them out," she whispered. She glanced briefly at the faces of her beloved family, illuminated by the candlelight.

With a deep breath, she placed her palms on the edge of the table and blew out the candles. She closed her eyes and clasped her hands, making a single, irrevocable wish.

She opened her eyes, blinking away the moistness. Her lips stretched into a grin, and she felt her cheeks heat up once more. It was as if she couldn't stop herself from smiling.

"Kufufufu," Mukuro chuckled by her ear. "You look very pleased, Nagi."

"Mukuro-sama!" she stammered, lightly pushing him away.

"Cake!" Lambo dived for the cake, only to be tripped by a smirking Gokudera Hayato. Before chaos could erupt, Tsuna pushed his way to the front and stood next to the woman.

"All right, we're going to give Chrome our presents _first_ , and then we'll all share the cake."

Chrome laughed and the rest of the Guardians joined in the laughter (even Hibari had a faint smile on his face).

Tsuna held his Mist Guardian's hands.

"Happy Birthday, Chrome."


	6. unbreakable

It's been a really long while since my last update ;; I was really busy preparing for my finals, so it took a while before everything was over. I'm a little more free now so except more frequent updates! Also, I was re-reading all the previous chapters and I apologise for the horrifying spelling and grammar errors I failed to notice and correct.

* * *

Sasagawa Ryouhei jogged into the Vongola mansion, sweat glistening down his neck and dampening his clothes.

"Extreme run!" he roared, catching the attention of Gokudera who happened to be walking by.

"You're too loud, you muscle-head! Don't disturb the Tenth!"

Ryouhei cocked his head to the side questioningly. "What's Sawada doing?"

"Ohh, you insufferable idiot," Gokudera groaned, falling against the wall as if he needed support. "He's been working on some urgent paperwork for the past three days. He hasn't had an ounce of sleep _and_ refuses to come down for breakfast, saying he needs to finish it up."

The Sun Guardian frowned. "That's not very good for his health."

"You don't say. But he won't listen to me so I can't get him out of his office."

"Okay, leave this to me," Ryouhei grinned, "I'll get him to take an extreme break."

* * *

Tsuna's head snapped up at the same time the door slammed open and he frantically tried to pat his hair down. His eyes felt swollen from the lack of sleep and his head hurt more than it did when his Hyper Intuition began blaring warning signs.

"Sawada you look like the face of death," Ryouhei peered at him. "Did you fall asleep or something?"

Tsuna glanced at the clock, squinting to make out the numbers through the blur he was seeing. "J-Just a little, yeah."

"Why only a little?" Ryouhei frowned, pulling Tsuna out of his chair. "Come on, off to bed you go."

The Decimo squirmed in the older man's arms, grasping for his desk. "There's no time to sleep, I need to get this done!"

"You _will_ sleep. Your health is extremely important!"

"But Onii-chan!" Tsuna was cut short when the Sun Guardian bent down and looked directly in his eyes.

"Everyone's worried about you, Sawada. We won't know what to do if you get sick being like this. We're your family right? So you can depend on us to help you too, you know? It's rather unfair if it's always only you helping us."

Tsuna sighed and nodded, breaking into a small smile. "Thanks Onii-chan. You're always knocking some sense into me."

"Hahaha, what are you talking about? Now, off to your extreme sleep!"

And with that, Tsuna was whisked off to bed while the rest of the Guardians in the mansion split up the paperwork between them and worked on it.

* * *

When Tsuna woke up, the first thing he noticed was a pile of paperwork lying in front of his bed. They had been stamped and filled up for him-

And then the Decimo was overcome with laughter.

"Tenth?" Gokudera peeked into his room, looking absolutely bewildered

"Thanks for all the help but the paperwork you filled out… but that's the set I left for CEDEF to complete."

"GAH!"


	7. home

"Hiiiee!"

Hibari Kyouya looked down from the edge of the roof, thoroughly unimpressed as a scrawny boy ran across the courtyard, chased by a bunch of boys who were relentlessly throwing mudballs at him. The boy seemed to sense his presence because he looked up- and his chocolate brown eyes caught Hibari's own steel grey ones for a mere instant before he tripped over a stone. And fell flat on his face.

"Way to go, Dame-Tsuna!" the bigger boys hooted, holding the mudballs above him and slowly letting them slip out of their hands and land on the already dirtied shirt with an off-putting 'plop'. The brunet struggled to sit up, the corners of his eyes swollen and red. He squirmed, trying to find the strength in his legs to stand up and run.

"Please, stop," he whimpered.

"Hahaha, what was that? Couldn't hear you!"

Tsuna flinched, not daring to bring his eyes up to the bullies'.

"Shut up, herbivores. I'll bite you to death for disturbing the peace in Nami-chuu."

And in that second, the hunters became the hunted.

"Run! It's Hibari!"

They had barely gotten a few meters away before the head of the Disciplinary Committee was before them, his tonfas glinting ominously. Hibari left the boys in a heap of blood and broken teeth. He was about to stalk off when he felt a small tug on his jacket. He looked down, crinkling his nose in distaste as the odour of mudballs filled his nose. The mob of chestnut hair was the first thing he saw, before the boy lifted his head up and looked him in the eyes.

He was trembling, his legs looking as if they would give away any moment, but his gaze was clear.

"Thank you, Hibari-san."

The 17-year-old found himself at a loss. He started blankly at the boy, before blinking and clearing his throat.

"Go clean yourself, herbivore," was all he managed before he made his way back to the roof.

* * *

When Hibari Kyouya turned seven, he received a pair of tonfas. No one knew where they had come from but the boy developed a strange attachment to them. He took them everywhere, and before long, they had become somewhat of an extension of his person. He grew notorious for "maintaining the peace", as he called it.

The mere mention of his name would send everyone scuttling and the wrongdoers who were clever enough to avoid challenging him would cease their violent behaviour. Hibari despised those who ruined the town, and hurt the people in it.

His parents realised not long after that it was an _obsession_. An addiction. One that left him virtually friendless. He was fond of small animals, however. His stoic demeanour would soften and the little critters loved him as much as he did them.

People, on the other hand, avoided him like the plague.

"Hibari is walking down the hall!" And with that, everyone would scatter. Not that he minded. He preferred it when the students obeyed the rules and refrained from crowding and filling the halls with mindless chatter.

So when the small herbivore, so full of terror and clearly a past of being bullied, held onto him and thanked him so firmly, he would never admit that he had been taken aback.

* * *

The next year, when Hibari had turned eighteen (and still in middle school), he slowly began to understand why the herbivore fascinated him so much. He didn't fancy the boy's meddlesome crowd, however. Constantly disrupting the peace, and then dragging _him_ into the mess. It didn't help that the constantly barreling loudmouth had joined the group in a turn of events.

* * *

Hibari would never admit, even ten years later, that a part of him had been relieved. He had a place he belonged. A place that when he opened the gates–

"Nyahahaha! Where are my sweets?"

"OI! Hibari you bastard! What took you so long?!"

"EXTREMELY LONG!"

"Welcome home, Kyouya."

Every so often, his eyes would meet the Decimo's (and the omnivore would smile at him with that _absolutely_ aggravating gentleness), and he still couldn't quite understand what he saw when he looked into those amber-hued eyes.

But it didn't really matter, in the end.

The clouds would always drift across the dazzling blue sky, amidst the lightning and rain, fondly bathed by the sun's rays and occasionally aggravated by the storms and _always_ at odds with the ever-elusive mist. They didn't need an answer, as long as the expanse of blue would be there, holding all of them together.

It was _home_.

* * *

Uhh it took a while for this to come out but I had too much fun with the headcanon. I know Tunafish is terrified by the prefect, but he's got that quality in him. The one that makes TYL! Hibari respect him in the first place. Also, in my opinion Hibari is probably around 18 when he properly joins Tsuna and gang because, well, by the time Ryouhei joined, Hibari was already head of the Disciplinary Committee so I have a feeling he stuck around. Of course, this destroys the logic that Ryouhei is the oldest because then technically, he won't be, but I'm pushing logic aside. Also, I didn't want to use the page separator but my dashes don't get saved :((


	8. reunion

"You tactless disciple… You think you'd escape by throwing this away where I can't see it?"

Sawada Tsunayoshi shuddered, feeling the hair on his neck prickle. At full-grown adult size, his tutor was more terrifying than ever.

"Reborn, uh, I can explain-"

"Sure you can," the hitman smirked darkly, delicately gripping the envelope between his index finger and thumb, waving it in the young man's face. "On your way back to Japan."

The Decimo paled. All thought in his mind came to a standstill as he digested the words that had been uttered a mere second ago. Satisfied that he had gotten such a reaction from Tsuna, Reborn slid off the desk he had been sitting on and strode out of the door.

"The plane will be off in two hours. Get yourself ready."

Tsuna collapsed on his seat and groaned, clutching his head. He had never anticipated that things would escalate to this.

Gokudera peered in from a corner of the open door, analysing the situation. He stepped in, knocking on the door to alert Tsuna of his presence and walked up to the brunet.

"Tenth…? Reborn-san has already arranged for everything so you just have to prepare some light items."

Tsuna looked up, his eyes comically large and the corners of his eyes reddened.

"Gokudera-kun," he whined, relapsing momentarily into his fourteen-year-old self, "I don't want to go!"

Gokudera felt his knees go weak. How was he to respond to this desperate plea?

"It can't be helped, Tenth," he muttered, patting the Decimo's back. "I'm sure it won't be that bad."

Tsuna inhaled and stood up, shaking his head.

"Guess it might be nicer than expected. Let's go, Hayato," he gave the silveret a small smile. Gokudera nodded and escorted his boss out of the office.

* * *

"I heard Gokudera-kun's living in Italy," Miki squealed, taking a seat at Kyoko's table. "How does he look like now?"

"He's still a monkey," Hana interjected before Kyoko replied. "Just more refined."

"Well, I suppose you still see all guys as monkey. Except your certain someone, right?" Shou snickered, pointing at the glinting ring around her ring finger. "Congrats, Kurokawa!"

A faint shade of red dusted the woman's cheeks as her best friend laughed at her, "You haven't told anyone yet, Hana-chan?"

"I don't need to," she sighed. "I'm sure that idiot's getting all worked up and has let half the world know already."

"Onii-chan can be loud," Kyoko agreed, before covering her mouth with a gasp. Hana covered her face as their ex-classmates worked up a storm almost immediately.

"That loud boxer?!"

"Kyoko-chan's big brother?! Wow, Hana-chan!"

"Give me a break," Hana groaned, reaching out to pinch Kyoko's cheek.

The brown-haired girl gave her an apologetic look before trying to shush the group.

"Well, Sasagawa-kun, you've always been our class idol. Any interesting developments on your side?" came the voice of their homeroom teacher, Arakawa. Everyone turned, delighted to see the old grump.

"Unfortunately, no," Kyoko laughed, the tips of her ears tinged red. "I hope I'll find someone in the near future."

Osamu whistled, leaning close to her. "Maybe I could help with that."

"Or you could reconsider," someone grasped Osamu's shoulder firmly. A ripple of excitement ran through the group of young adults as Gokudera Hayato stepped back, adjusting the black jacket he was wearing over a red dress shirt. His emerald eyes glinted and they were fascinated by the inexplicable maturity that was set deeply in his handsome features.

"Evening, Sensei. How're you guys doing?"

Everyone turned to the doorway as Yamamoto Takeshi stepped in, bowing to his old teacher, his smile as wide as they remembered, albeit with a hint of melancholy they couldn't quite grasp. The scar on his chin stood out, yet it hardly marred his good looks.

"Long time no see, Goku-chan," Naito raised an arm from his seat at the centre of the room. "Where's Sawada-chan?"

"Stop calling me that. How old are you?" Gokudera clicked his tongue. "The Tenth's on his way. Got delayed by a few… distractions."

"Wait, by Tenth," Mochida stared at the duo. "You mean Dame-Tsuna?! That pervert who ran around in his boxers?"

Gokudera trained a glare on the man. "What-"

"It's okay, Hayato. I have to agree with that, well, except for the 'pervert' part."

Heads turned - once again - and the class fell in silence as they took in the sight of the last two missing members of their class reunion.

Sawada Tsunayoshi carried with him a certain regality they had never seen in middle school, a far cry from the whimpering, puny boy they had once known. He had made little progress height-wise, but his very presence seemed to fill up the physical gap. His gaze was firm, never once wavering as he looked around at those who had once been his classmates eight years before. His chocolate-coloured irises, teetering on a fascinating mixture of amber, held wisdom far beyond his years. Next to him, Chrome pushed a strand of hair back, a faint hue of red travelling across her cheeks. She had grown even more gorgeous than they could remember and the timidness in her demeanour had given way to a quiet confidence that showed in the way she walked.

"I think I'm falling," Miki swooned, clutching Kyoko's arm.

"Was Chrome always this gorgeous? You think I have a chance?" Shou gaped, his crush on the girl resurfacing.

"Wouldn't advise that if I were you," Naito rolled his eyes.

"What?" Shou turned. "She's taken?"

"That's right. And if you mess with her, rest assured your nightmares won't be the only things you'll be terrified of at night." Shou would've laughed it off, if not for the Very Serious look on Naito's face as he fingered the dinner knife on the table.

Tsuna approached Arakawa, bowing low before walking over to Naito. The red-haired man stood and firmly shook hands with the shorter brunet.

"It's been a while," Tsuna smiled, and half the girls felt as if they had been pierced by Cupid's arrow. "How's Tomaso faring?"

"Never better. We always appreciate your continued partnership."

"Tsuna-kun, you own a company like Naito?" Mika questioned, wondering what the two were talking about.

Tsuna turned to the girl, flashing another disarming smile. "I suppose you could say that. Vongola Inc., our headquarters are in Italy. I daresay you might have heard of it."

"Heard of it?! Dude, it's like, forever in the news!" Everyone looked at Osamu. "Wait, don't tell me, are you the mysterious C.E.O or something?!"

"You've got me figured out," Tsuna laughed, rubbing the back of his head.

"No way," everyone breathed, in disbelief that the one who had seemed most likely to fail at life was now at a position higher than many of them could imagine, at at such a young age…!

At that instant, as they attempted to digest the information, a series of shrieks echoed in the hallway, followed by the clang of metal against a wall. Tsuna whipped around, his hands in the pocket of his jacket. Almost immediately, Gokudera and Yamamoto had subtly shifted up to stand on either side of Tsuna. Chrome stood behind Tsuna, peering to the side to see what was happening. The door slid open and the legend of Nami-chuu's Disciplinary Committee entered.

Hibari Kyouya retracted his tonfas, gave the room a cursory glance before walking up to Tsuna. Yamamoto and Gokudera visibly relaxed and Chrome looked almost amused.

"The hell you doing?" Gokudera demanded, running a hand through his silver hair.

Hibari ignored him and turned to Tsuna as Gokudera seethed. It was astounding how Tsuna held his ground against the terrifying ex-prefect.

"I didn't come here to crowd."

"I know, Kyouya, I know. Well, you could always wait outside if you prefer?"

Hibari glanced around, eyes narrowing.

"Hn." In response, he took a seat at the furthest corner of the classroom, holding out his hand as Hibird landed on his finger, chirping cheerfully.

"Uh…" Mochida whispered, "Why is Hibari-san here?"

"More importantly, why did Tsuna-kun call him 'Kyouya'?!"

"He called Gokudera-kun 'Hayato' too."

" Oh wow."

A smirk graced Gokudera's lips as the loud conversations turned into hushed whispers. Let them bask in the glory that was his Tenth. While they would never come to understand his greatness fully, they had been graced by a fraction of it. Yamamoto seemed to be on the same wavelength for once, as he gave Gokudera a grin. Chrome came to join them as Tsuna engaged in a conversation with a cluster of the girls, Kyoko and Hana included.

"Bossu really shines at times like this," she observed.

"Damn right he does," was Gokudera's immediate (and expected) response. "Now if that bastard over there would stop raining on the party…"

Hibari, despite their lack of close proximity, turned to face them coolly, one leg crossed over the other. Challenging.

A vein popped. Yamamoto held back the Storm Guardian as he attempted to wreak havoc on the Cloud Guardian, ruining the reunion in effect.

As if sensing the unrest among his Guardians, Tsuna turned and gave them an exasperated look. He glanced at his watch and excused himself from his ex-classmates before walking over to the trio.

"It's about time we get going. Since we're in town, I promised Mom I'd go over as soon as I can. She invited Kyoko-chan and Hana-chan too. Lambo called right before I came in and he's whining about how I-pin's crush for Kyouya seems to have intensified."

"That stupid cow needs to grow a spine."

Tsuna chuckled. "Come on, let's thank everyone and go." Hibari stood and stalked out of the classroom first, Hibird in tow.

As the members of class 3-B (graduated, year XXXX) watched the unlikely group leave, they realised that they had been left with more questions than answers.

* * *

"That wasn't too bad was it?" Reborn asked, sipping the tea Nana had offered him. "Maintaining connections is also a part of being the Decimo."

"WHY ARE YOU HER-"

"Tsu-kun!"

"Mom!" Tsuna engulfed the petite woman in a tight hug, inhaling the scent of tangerines. "It's been so long."

"Pictures aren't enough," Nana smiled brightly, her eyes glassy. "My wonderful son has grown into a fine man." The Decimo laughed, overcome by emotion.

"Thanks, Mom. I love you."

She ruffled his gravity-defying hair before pulling away, adjusting the lapels of his dress shirt.

"It's a good thing we hired Reborn-san, don't you think? He really helped you."

Tsuna gave Reborn a dirty look over his mother's shoulder, fuming internally as the sadistic hitman sipped his cup of tea, eyes glinting with mirth.

"Yeah. Absolutely."

 _No. Absolutely not._

* * *

I think we can all agree that reunion fics are just an excuse to show off to the world that Sawada Tsunayoshi will grow to be a fine man beyond everyone's expectations. And wow, it's nearly a year since I last updated?! I'm as guilty about inactivity on this as I am about Dare Box (and in any case any of you have read it, rest assured I got over my writer's block and I plan to finish it eventually). In any case, I hope you enjoyed my take on it!


	9. rivalry

If there was one thing that hadn't changed since middle school, Gokudera would say it was the threat of Yamamoto Takeshi's very existence. Beneath the easygoing nature, the Rain Guardian held a resolve that rivalled Gokudera's own. And there was no telling when he'd get in the Tenth's good– well– better books and steal his position as the right-hand man right under his nose.

Or so he told himself.

Because the fights Gokudera picked with the man weren't just an assertion of his position as the Decimo's right-hand. They had become a reassuring reminder that Yamamoto was still around to laugh with that goofy expression and pat Gokudera's back, retracting just in time to avoid a clean punch to his ribs.

The day Yamamoto returned with the scar on his chin, Gokudera had lashed out. Angry words that stung, like the jarring blemish on the Japanese man's face (a chilling reminder of the future they had avoided). And if there was anyone who understood him better than the Tenth, it was Yamamoto. If there was anyone to be blamed, it should've been anyone but Yamamoto. But it was _exactly_ Yamamoto whom he had shouted at.

"Why were you so careless, you idiot?!"

 _You're back in one piece._

There were things that went unsaid. But it was fine that way because Yamamoto had always understood. Always.

So when rich brown eyes pierced Gokudera's own, it was soft and warm, but that irked the Storm Guardian all over again, and then they'd fall into rhythmic banter, and it was as if Yamamoto was telling him–

 _It's good to be home._

* * *

It's an update after 6 months! So sorry that it's been this long, but I had major exams to study for and I dropped everything afterwards to work on NaNoWriMo (which I won this year!) I missed writing this, so there'll be more coming, no matter how infrequent the updates may be. If you guys like 1827, don't forget to check out my other fic, Snapshots :")) I haven't updated that in ages either but they're definitely going to happen, those updates. (I noticed a number of horrid mistakes here and there, I promise to edit them someday)


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